title: Blood lead levels in Omani children admitted to hospital.
abstract: Whole blood lead levels were estimated by atomic absorption analysis in 119 Omani children admitted to hospital. Eighteen per cent of the children were found to have a blood lead level of 1.2 mumol/l or more, 5 per cent were found to have a level above 2.4 mumol/l and 3 per cent had very high levels in excess of 3.4 mumol/l. No overall relationship was demonstrated between age and blood lead levels. However, children less than 3 years old were three times more likely than those 3 years or above to have a blood lead level in excess of 2.4 mumol/l. The results of this study are sufficiently worrying to justify a more widespread community based survey of blood lead levels in Omani children.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Child Health, London.
authors.forename: D A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Woolf
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006767:Hospitals, District; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007855:Lead Poisoning / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology; D008131:London; D008297:Male; D009850:Oman / Q000208:ethnology